Redo at past mistakes

Chapter 5- The consequences of lies

Sudden dread and devastation fell upon Dazai as the gravity of the situation finally settled in. Akutagawa didn't know the present streets of Yokohama. Akutagawa was alone in the streets of Yokohama. Akutagawa was alone in streets he didn't know.... anything could happen to him. Anything could have already happened to him, given the large time period in which the boy might have fled, there was a high likelihood that something bad already occurred. Also, it may be true that Akutagawa is plenty strong, Dazai is well aware of that, but he's just a child. A child who has suffered through fourteen years in the slums where any day he could slip up and make it his last, and that day could very well be today. To make it worse, with Akutagawa having not lived in the slims for a whole week those survival skills he learnt for these situations might possibly have come a little rusty which only heightened the possibility of him slipping up and falling into danger. Just imagining Akutagawa alone in the city possibly injured or in danger only caused Dazai's anxiety to spike further and further. As Dazai's mind started to go highwire delving into all the horrible situations that could be occurring at this very minute, a terrifying realisation hit him: How was he going to tell Chuuya?!

He couldn't.

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Running, running, running. That was the only thing Akutagawa could think to do. His heart was beating hard in his chest and his breaths were fast and heavy; his eyes were wide and glazed over- mind absent and body on autodrive. The only thing he knew to do was run. It was dark out, late at night and the city was going to sleep. Many shops had closed their doors and other establishments had switched off the lights. Poor, dim street lamps where all Akutagawa had to light his way, making this an even more perilous journey, but what was he supposed to do. Go back? He was meant to to be fast asleep in bed like the rest of the city but after finding out the truth behind the lies, how could Akutagawa stay there? Those people, can he even trust them any more... it wasn't safe to stay when that was uncertain. The words they had spoken had unwritten everything the boy knew to be true. It was all a facade, a stupid lie that he had foolishly believed. They were never looking for his sister, if anything they were using him but for what? He'd gladly have done anything they wanted if they found Gin, so why didn't they tell him they knew where she was or at the very least that she was safe. Yet again, who's to say that it was the same Gin, perhaps instead a replacement that looked like something else. Regardless what it was it didn't matter, because hearing their conversation, that wasn't meant for his ears, had broken his trust and now all he had left was his ability to run.

For a boy with a possible lung condition, he had awfully good stamina which was vital at a time like now, because he needed to get as far as possible while he still had the secret of his escape on his side. However, it was starting to get progressively harder to keep this goal up. His head was starting to spin and his muscles screamed from soreness. His breaths came quicker and more desperate yet, no matter how hard he tried, he never could get in enough oxygen. That stupid thing his body needed to survive seemed to avoid him like the plague. It was as if his lungs were a detestable place for the element to rest in and call it home. Well blame the fucking slums; the scarred tissue that made up his lungs was a result of breathing in the polluted fumes in that wretched place, dooming his body to this sorrowful state. Akutagawa didn't choose this life; he was unwillingly chosen by it but he adapted like the survivor he was, so he'll be able to last. If there was one thing he knew how to do, that was run!

Running: he intended to do it until his body gave up. Seeing the ground come closer in his vision, he was surprised to have reached that point so soon. Pain raced across his face as it violently, slammed against the turmac, scrapping it due to the powerful friction caused by the momentum carrying him forward. It hurts. It hurts. Oh god it hurts. Red dripped down his face and his vision blurred into a frantic mess. It hurts. Please make it stop. Akutagawa's mind was screaming out in agony. The emotional turmoil his mind had faced left him in a defeated condition. Pair that with the exhaustion from lack of sleep and the soreness from running, his body had given up. Akutagawa could feel everything. The slight twang of pain and aches that scattered from his tired muscles; his beating heart that thudded heavily with each and every pump. The raging agony that furiously flowed from the red river on his face, which continued to grow ever aggressively. Finally there was the tortuous pain soaring from his right ankle, preventing him from getting back up and continuing his escape.